Shipping and braking mechanism for looms



Sept. 22, 1936.

B. w. BROUWER 2,055,229

SHIPPING AND BRAKING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Original Filed June 18, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet l Illllllllllllllllllwllllllllllllllllllllllll 5 Ill INVENTOR. Benjamin W. brouwcx A W7 ATTORNEYS.

Sept. 22, 1936. B R 2,055,222?

SHIPPING AND BRAKING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Original Filed June 18, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR. Benjami n W. Brouwel By WW Patented Sept. 22, 1936 SHIPPING AND BRAKING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Benjamin W. Brouwer, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass., a. corporation of Massachusetts Original application June 18, 1934, Serial No.

731,073. Divided and this, application Septemher 9, 1935, Serial No.

12 Claims.

This application is a division of co-pending application Serial No. 731,073, filed June 18, 1934.

This invention relates to improvements in shipping and braking mechanism for looms and it is the general object of the invention to provide a mechanism of this type which shall be very easily operable so as to require a minimum effort on the part of the operator to start the loom.

It has been the practice heretofore in the construction of certain types of looms to employ a lever having a T-shaped notch into which fits a stud carried by the shipper handle. In these former devices it has been necessary to fit very accurately the notch at one side of the T- slot and the eifort of starting the loom has also been considerable. It is an important object of my present invention to interpose a link between the shipper handle and'the force transmitting lever which acts to exert considerable force on the transmitting lever when only a slight force is exerted on the shipper handle.

The brake handle of looms as heretofore constructed has ordinarily been so made that it will knock off the shipper handle when the brake is applied and I retain this feature, but in addition utilize a form of link which can be arranged to exercise this control on shipper handles now in existence. In this connection it is a further object of my invention to employ a link on the brake handle which will throw the brake to off position with comparatively slight effort on the part of the user.

Looms usually employ protector mechanism which includes a hunter to. be struck by the protector dagger and moved against the brake handle to set the brake as quickly as possible. It is a further object of my invention to use the protector bunter as a stop to assist in locking the toggle connection which includes the aforesaid link. At the time of protection the hunter breaks the toggle connection of both the brake and shipper handles.

On certain classes of looms employing the T- shaped slot already mentioned considerable strain is placed on the center stop motion when stopping for weft fault. Shipper mechanisms have been constructed in the past so that the friction drive is rendered temporarily tighter at the beginning of the knock-off stroke. It is a further object of my invention to use in combination with the toggle connection of the shipper handle a second toggle connection to control the clutch mechanism. The pressure between the friction surfaces of the clutch increases as these surfaces are forced together but the toggle connection is so designed that its power increases as the friction between the surfaces increases with the result that there is no appreciable increase in the effort of clutching the loom when the toggle link is used.

The lock for the toggle at the shipper handle is found sufficient to hold the parts yieldingly in driving position and for this reason it is not necessary to lock the toggle for the clutch. The power required to ship the loom to driving. position is found to decrease because of the relation of the two toggles and the last part of the forward stroke of the shipper handle requires very little effort. Stopping through the center stop motion is the reverse of starting by hand and therefore the beginning of the knockof stroke will require very little power and hence the center stop motion will be subjected to little or no strain. Furthermore, because of the fact that the toggle and the clutching mechanism is not locked the full effect of the force transmitted from the shipper handle can be used to unship the loom.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. l is a top plan view of one end of a loom showing the driving, mechanism therefor with my invention applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the structure shown in Fig. l, the brake and shipper handles being in off position,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section on line 3-3, Fig. 2, looking toward the shipper and brake handles,

Fig. 4 is an enlarged elevation of a part of the structure shown at the left hand part of Fig. 2, Fig. 5 is an enlarged front elevation in the direction of arrow 5, Fig. 1,

Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical section on line 6-6, Fig. 1,

Fig. '7 is a diagrammatic view similar to part of Fig. 5 with the parts in a different position,

Fig. 8 is a vertical transverse section on line 8--8, Fig. 5,

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic plan view of certain parts controlled by the center stop motion, and

Fig. 10 is a graph showing the relation of the a line joining the and the pivot 54. osition indicated in )nnected to it move members 26 and 27 J6 pivoted to move iaft and has a dennected as at 62 to s connected as at 64 crank lever 66 also stud 53. The lower ttached to the fors with the shipper slightly behind the t axis and the conandle is the forown in Fig. 2 which employ a form of will stop the loom 11 to be boxed. As he outer end ill of :nown construction esses an adjustable l2 rigid with the the loom with that described the ship- 3 the left from the is. 2 the effect of a clockwise directhe arm 51 by a link 53 and at the forwardly to pull pring T7 and in a 1 members 26 and loved slightly past axes 5i and 54 the :rew '56 carried by movement of the ;ed. The shipper gly locked in drivforces exerted by the different parts of my invention.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, I show a loom frame Ill having a driving stand H provided with an outboard bearing l2 through which extends the top or crank shaft l3 of the loom. The latter may have the customary handle M by which the loom can be turned over by hand.

Secured to the shaft is a brake wheel l5 around a part of which extends a band or brake l6 one end of which is fastened to a stud I! secured to the loom frame. The other end of the band is attached to a rod is adjustably connected as at Hi to the upper end of a small rocking lever pivoted to the loom stand at 2|. The lower end of the lever 20 is attached to a rod 22 which extends forwardly to have connection with parts to be described.

Secured also to the shaft I3 is a top gear 25 which may mesh with a gear of twice the size on the bottom shaft not shown. Gear 25 is associated with a clutch member 26 engageable with a second clutch member 21 moving with a driving gear 28 slidable on shaft l3 and rotatable freely thereabo-ut under influence of a driving motor not shown. When the loom is not running the members 26 and 21 are disconnected and the driving gear 28 is moved outwardly from the frame I0. 7

A clutch lever 30 is pivoted at 3| to a stand 32 carried by the frame II and has controlling connection with a slide collar 33 movable on the shaft I 3 toward and from the loom frame. By means of the connecting mechanism designated generally at 34 to be described in detail hereinafter, movement of the collar 33 toward the gear 28 as shown in Fig. 1 will effect driving connection between the members 26 and 21, and conversely, movement of said collar 33 away from the gear will disconnect the clutch members.

. Such movements of clutch member 21 are transmitted through a rod 35 attached to a lever 36 movable about a vertical axis 31. The latter is supported by a small stand 38 carried by the loom frame and has an arm 39 which is operatively connected to a forwardly extending rod 40.

With the exception of mechanism 34 the matter thus far described of itself forms no part of my present invention and may be constructed and operated in a manner similar to devices already used to accomplish the driving and braking of a loom. Movement of the rods 22 and 40 forwardly, or to the left as viewed in Fig. 2, will release the brake and connect the members 26 and 21, and movement of these rods rearwardly or to the right as viewed in Fig. 2 will apply the brake and unship the loom, or disconnect the clutch members.

In carrying my present invention into effect I operate the rods 22 and 40 by improved lever and linkage connections which reduce the labor of starting the loom. The shipper handle is secured to a shipper shaft 5! which may extend across the loom and has a depending finger or arm 52 to which is pivotally connected the upper end of a link 53. The lower end of the link is pivoted as at 54 to a small bell crank lever 55 pivoted about a fixed axis 55 carried by the loom. The link is attached to a substantially horizon- 53 and arm 52 lies behind centers of the shipper shaft In moving to the full line p Fig. 4, the link and levers c( the rod 40 forward to clutch together to drive the loom.

A brake handle may I freely around the shipper sl pending arm 51 pivotally co: a'second link 53. The latter i to an arm of another ball pivoted on the fixed axis or arm 61 of the lever 65 is a Ward end of rod 22, and a handle, the center 62 will lie line joining the shipper shaf' nection 54 when the brake h Ward or left hand position sh corresponds to brake release.

It is customary in looms t protection mechanism which abruptly should a shuttle fa. shown in Fig. 2 I illustrate t a protection bunter of well-l against the rear of which pr screw H carried in an arm brake handle 69.

The link 83 for the brake l ally extending lug 15 thlOlJ a knock-01f screw so posit the lower part of arm 52. l ditions with the loom in opr oif screw 76 will lie behind short distance from the arm will be in extreme left han against a stop not shown but tends to pull the rod 40 rearw: relatively heavy spring 18 cor see Fig. 2, acts to apply the When the loom is idle the i be in the rear position shown clutch disconnected. When ti brake may be on or off, but it is off, link 63 being straigh tension spring 78. With the shown in-Fig. 2 the spring 78 maximum strain and will holl ened because the center 62 is line joining the centers of ti and the stud 54. Stop screw limit the action of spring 18 which link 63 is a part, and 1 ingly locked.

When it is desired to start 1 part of my invention thus far 1 per handle 50 will be moved tr full line position shown in F. which is to rock the lever 55 in tion about axis 56, lowering force transmitted through the same time moving the arm 58 rod 40 against the action of s direction to connect the clutcl 21. After the pivot 59 has nc the line joining the centers of arm 52 will engage the stop sr link 63 and further forward shipper handle will be arrest mechanism is therefore yieldin.

part by the link 93 so that rod 22 can move rearwardly and permit spring 18 to pull forwardly on rod 18 to set the brake band. The other effect is to cause knock-01f screw 16 to engage the lower end of arm 52 of the shipper handle and rock the latter rearwardly or to the right as viewed in Fig. 2 to break its toggle connection the effect of which is to permit spring 11 to move rod 49 rearwardly and thus disconnect the clutch members 26 and 21.

The mechanism 34 as shown more particularly in Figs. 5 to 8, transmits the pull of rod 40 to the clutch part 21. A collar 89 is secured in adjusted longitudinal position on the shaft l3 by set screw BI and has passing therethrough a pivot pin 82. A setting lever or yoke 83 is pivotally connected to the collar by the pin and has spaced bearings 84 on opposite sides of the collar which are connected by a web 85. Each bearing has a rounded arm or thrust nose 86 to bear against a washer 81 adjacent the hub 88 of driving gear 28.

A sliding collar 89 on shaft l3, see Fig. 6, has shoulders 99 between which lie portions of the collar 33. A U-shaped strap 9| extends around one end of the collar 89 and has parallel spaced arms 92 through which passes a second pivot pin 93. The latter is movable in a slot 99 which lies in and extends between faces 95 of the sliding collar, see Fig. 8.

A link 96 is interposed between each end of pin 93 and a pivotal connection 91 with a lateral extension 98 on each bearing 89, see Figs. 5 and '7. A setting screw 99 affords adjustment of the centers 93 and 9'! toward and from the shaft l3. For a more detailed description of the construction and operation of mechanism 39 reference may be had to copending application Serial No. 731,695 filed by Holmes June 21, 1934.

In non-driving position, links 99 will be in the position shown in Fig. 5 and the thrust noses will be moved away from the driving gear to relieve pressure between the clutch elements. As lever 39 is drawn toward the driving gear, the sliding collar 89 will cause the links 96 to as sume the position of Fig. '7, preferably at right angles to the shaft l3 and not locked. The effect of this movement is to force the noses against the washer 8'! which in turn will cause driving relation of the clutch elements.

While the brake handle is movable about the shipper shaft, the actual construction as used in certain types of looms is as shown in Fig. 9. The shipper shaft has the shipper handle secured to it and passes through a sleeve 100 having suitable bearings. A knock-off finger l9! fastened to the sleeve is placed to be depressed by a center filling stop motion lever H12 at the time of weft fault. The brake handle is secured to the outer end of the sleeve and is rocked to stopping position when finger ID! is depressed.

Fig. 10 shows approximately the nature and magnitudes of the forces exerted by the several parts of the mechanism described. OX represents movement of the clutch element 2! along the shaft l3 toward the driven element 26, and CY represents pressures. Assuming the clutch elements to be at the point of engagement at A, continued movement of element 21 toward element 26 will require an increasing pressure, represented by ascending line AB. The movement of the shipper handle, however, straightens the toggle link 53, and the power of the toggle will increase, so that the actual force which the weaver must exert, so far as the toggle is concerned, will diminish, as suggested by downwardly sloping line AC. The result is that the pressure required at the shipper handle will remain more or less constant, as suggested by line AD.

This uniform force AD is exerted against the toggle links 96 of the shipper mechanism, and the increasing power of the latter as the parts move toward the position of Fig. 7 results in a required force which actually grows less, as shown by line AE. When the centers top motion lever E92 presses down on finger lDl, therefore, a very slight effort will suiflce to move the shipper handle and clutch to stopping position.

In certain uses of my invention the stepping force is derived from the lay L when it is moving rapidly, and the relation of toggles just described permits a quick unshipping at high speed without strain.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided a very simple and efficient means for controlling the shipping and braking mechanism of the looms wherein toggle links are used to disable the braking mechanism and also to engage the clutch members. I have found that mechanism as described herein operates very easily and requires a minimum of effort on the part of the weaver. It will also be seen that the knock-oif screw i9 is carried by one of the links to engage a part which will move the shipper handle to stopping position and that both toggles are limited by a connection with the protection mechanism. The stop screw 16 may be used to limit the toggle connection of the shipper handle when the loom is running. I find that the bell crank levers to which the toggle links are attached can be placed on the studs which support the small levers heretofore used and already described in connection with the T-slots so that my improvements can be applied to existing looms without substantial alteration of either the shipping or braking levers and without moving the stud 58. It will further be seen that the toggles of the shipper handle and shipper mechanism compound their effect so that the force required to ship the loom to running position actually decreases as the shipping continues.

The matter related to the protector mechanism shown herein is not claimed in this application but is made the subject matter of the parent application Serial No. 731,073.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In a loom shipping and braking mechanism, a shipper handle, shipper mechanism, a toggle connection between the handle and shipper mechanism, a brake handle, brake mechanism, a toggle connection between the brake handle and brake mechanism, and means carried by the last named toggle connection to unlock the first named toggle connection.

2. In loom shipping mechanism, a shipper handle, a clutch element to be moved, and mechanism including two separate toggle connections, one to move the other, and interposed between the handle and element.

3. In loom driving mechanism, a shipper handle, a clutch element to be moved to driving position, a toggle operatively connected to the handle, a second toggle operatively relatable to the element, and connections between the toggles eflimited to the details fective to cause movement of the first toggle to move the second toggle.

4. In a loom driving mechanism, a shipper handle, a pair of clutch members to be pressed together to drive the loom, a toggle relatable to the members to exert increasing force as the members are pressed closer together, and a second toggle connected tothe handle to exert an increasing pressure on the first toggle as the members are pressed closer together.

5. In a loom driving mechanism, a shipper handie, a pair of clutch members to be pressed together to drive the loom, a toggle connected to the shipper handle and movable by the latter to a yieldingly locked position, and a second toggle relatable to the clutch members to press them together and normally positioned when the loom is running in position to exert maximum force on the members.

' 6. In a loom driving mechanism, a shipper handle, a pair of clutch members to be pressed together to drive the loom, a toggle connected to the shipper handle and movable by the latter to a yieldingly locked position, a second toggle relatable to the clutch members to press them together and normally positioned when the loom is running in position to exert maximum force on the members, and stopping means to act on the second toggle to move the latter to stopping position.

7. In a loom driving mechanism, a shipper handle, a pair of clutch members tobe pressed together to drive the loom, a toggle connected to the shipper handle and movable by the latter to a yieldingly locked position, a second toggle relatable to the clutch members to press them together and normally positioned when the loom is running in position to exert maximum force on the members, and stopping means to act on the second toggle to move the latter to stopping position by a force acting through the first toggle.

8. In a loom driving mechanism, a shipper handle, a pair of clutch members to be pressed together to drive the loom, a toggle connected to the shipper handle and movable by the latter to a yieldingly locked position, a second toggle relatable to the clutch members to press them together and normally positioned when the loom is running in position to exert maximum force on the members, and stopping means to act on the second toggle to move the latter to stopping position by a force which unlocks the first toggle.

9. In a loom shipping mechanism, a shipper handle, a clutch element to be moved, a toggle mechanism to be moved by and lock the shipper handle in running position, a second toggle mechanism to move and lock the clutch element in running position, and connections between the toggle mechanisms causing the first toggle when moved by the shipper handle to move the other toggle connection.

10. In a loom shipping mechanism, a shipper handle element, a clutch element to be moved to running position, a separate toggle mechanism connected to each element, each toggle mechanism to lock the corresponding element in running position, and connections between the toggle mechanisms causing the toggle mechanism for the shipper handle element to move the toggle mechanism of the clutch element.

11. In a loom shipper mechanism, a shipper handle element, a clutch element, a lever between the elements, and a toggle connection between each element and the adjacent end of the lever, the shipper handle element to move one toggle mechanism to move the lever, and the latter to move the other toggle mechanism to cause movement of the clutch element, each toggle mechanism locking the adjacent element in running position.

12. In a loom shipping and braking mechanism, a shipper handle, shipper mechanism, a toggle connection between the handle and shipper mechanism, a brake handle, brake mechanism controlled thereby, and means moving with the brake handle to unlock the toggle connection between the shipper handle and shipper mechanism when the brake handle moves to stopping position.

BENJAMIN W. BROUWER. 

